Save Your Business Thousands Of Dollars: Simple Security Steps.
There are many ways of protecting your network and ensuring that it remains secure. But, it is still considered that the majority of businesses aren't doing nearly enough to prevent their network being hacked. Wireless network security software is just one of them. The first step that businesses fail to do is free and by far the easiest to implement. This is to change the default settings on their wireless access points. You see when your purchase your equipment, it has default factory configuration settings that are usually the same for each company. Knowledgable hackers will know all of these default settings for each brand of hardware and this will be the first thing they attempt, when trying to gain acces to your network. Once they are in, they can change defaults themselves and wreak havoc on your network. When changing your settings, the most important things to do are 1- enable your security features and settings, and 2 - change the default password, not to a name or something that is easily guessed, but to a random password consisting of letters and numbers.
There is also an array of wireless network security software available on the market that will alert you of any intrusion. Depending on your business needs, you will find that systems differ from stand-alone applications to business servers with in-built wireless network security software. When looking at stand-alone software, the first place to look SNORT, (www.snort.org). They use a system called BASE which stands for Basic Analysis and Security Engine. With this software you can easily analyze and query all alerts that come from your S.N.O.R.T sensor. This software has had millions of downloads, it is the most popular intrusion prevention and detection system in the world, and it is even recommended by Microsoft. So you can be sure that you are safe with the world leader in this technology.
Another form of wireless network security software is a Windows small business server that has built in functions that will enable you to detect intrusions and will alert you to any attack that is launched against your network. One of the most popular business serverss that have this ability is the Windows Small Business Server 2003 (R2). As the name suggests, it is ideal for small businesses. Along with a whole host of features to keep your network running smoothly and your productivity up it focuses heavily on security. By using what it calls the "Green Check" you will know at all times that you are safe, secure and up-to-date. If you do not have your Green Check, the software will tell you exactly what you need to do in order to get it. Even the standard edition of this products includes firewall services with simple, easy to use management and admin' tools that are completely unique to the product.
The important thing to remember when using wireless network security software is to choose a brand, (or vendor) and stick with it. By purchasing your hardware and software from the same vendor you will ensure seamless security that is far tighter and more effective than if you were to purchase your products from multiple sources. Also Microsoft offer a download that will scan your system or network for any problems including misconfigurations and updates that may be missing. this download is called the "Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer". All in all, If your business has gone wireless, then you do NEED wireless security software, and you need to make sure you do all you can to protect your business. Don't become one of the $144.1 million statistics, (and that's just a 12 month period). It is always safest to use the mindset that you already have a problem, rather than waiting for one to occur.
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